Neighbors shocked, saddened after man violently killed while in car

OZONE PARK, Queens — Sherwood Beverly was so loved at the Riverdale Osborne Apartment Complex where he had lived for more than 30 years, many residents nicknamed him “Prince” because they said he was a “prince of a guy.”

Neighbors couldn’t believe that the outgoing and loving neighbor they known for decades died so violently.

"He was exciting," neighbor Carolyn Maxwell said. "Anytime you see him, you were ready to see him. Because he was exciting. He brought joy to everyone."

Police say 51-year-old Sherwood Beverly was a passenger in a Mercedes SUV early Sunday morning when two men got out of another dark SUV at a red light and shot Beverly in the head.

It happened on the the service road to the Van Wyck Expressway near North Conduit Avenue.

Two of the three other people in the SUV were also shot, but their wounds were superficial.

“He did not have any enemies,” Shelby Smith, a neighbor, told PIX11. “He was a cool dude who got along with everybody,” he added.

Sources tell PIX11 police believe the shooting stemmed from a long standing feud between two groups.

After the gunfire, the wounded trio drove six miles to the 69th Precinct stationhouse in Canarsie where police called for an ambulance.

Beverly, the father of two grown children, was pronounced dead at Brookdale Hospital.

“He always had a smile on his face,” Patricia Green, another neighbor, told PIX11. “He was always helping people out,” she added.

Beverly’s family and friends are asking for the public to help find those two gunmen and solve the murder of Sherwood Beverly.

“His family is destroyed now. Everyone in this complex who knew and loved him, we all want justice for him,” Ms. Maxwell told PIX11.

Residents planned a candlelight vigil where everyone was asked to come out and show their love for Prince.